Rice hurts shoulderin Redskins' practice

By Greg Frazier

Daily News Sports Editor

Posted:
08/01/2014 12:14:00 AM PDT

Updated:
08/01/2014 12:14:00 AM PDT

Click photo to enlarge

FILE - These are 2014 file photos showing then-Oakland Athletics baseball player Sam Fuld and Athletics Tommy Milone. The Athletics have traded left-hander Milone to the Minnesota Twins for outfielder Sam Fuld. The A's announced the deal Thursday morning, July 31, 2014, before the trade deadline. Fuld began the season with Oakland. (AP Photo/File)

Jerry Rice Jr. (Menlo School in Atherton) injured a shoulder as he hit the ground at the end of a pass route Thursday morning at the Washington Redskins' training camp. Coach Jay Gruden told the Washington Post he does not yet know the extent of the injury to the wide receiver, the son of the 49ers great. Gruden said the team awaits test results, but added, "It's pretty significant, I believe."

Rice is an undrafted rookie out of UNLV by way of UCLA.

Robert Griffin III, the Redskins' star quarterback, spoke to The Washington Times about Rice.

"We're all players here," Griffin said. "I try not to call him Junior because I'm sure he's been called that a lot. But Jerry, he does a good job. You can see traces of his dad in him in the coaching that he has already. But he's just another one of the guys out there trying to fight to make this team just like we all are."

Sam Fuld is back in the Bay Area. The Minnesota Twins traded the former Stanford outfielder to the A's on Thursday for left-handed pitcher Tommy Milone.

Fuld, a defensive standout in the outfield who is having a good year at the plate in his seventh pro season, rejoins the team for which he played seven games in April before being released. The Twins claimed him off waivers April 20.

Fuld hit .274 with a .370 on-base percentage and 12 stolen bases in 53 games for Minnesota and made numerous highlight-reel plays in the outfield. He has hit .330 with a .441 on-base percentage since June 22. The A's can use him in left or center. Center fielder Coco Crisp is strugglying with a chronic neck problem.

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Fuld and Jonny Gomes, acquired Thursday from Boston, are likely to compete for time in left field after Yoenis Cespedes was traded to the Red Sox in the deal that brought Oakland pitcher Jon Lester.

Former Stanford pitcher Scott Snodgress, 24, has been promoted to Class AAA Charlotte by the Chicago White Sox. He was 6-7 with a 3.89 ERA in 21 starts for the Double-A Birmingham Barons.

"Good work today; keep stacking the days together," Gerhart told teammates and coaches.

It was recognition for how well Gerhart, the Jaguars' new feature back after four years as a backup in Minnesota, performed during the first two days of training camp.

Gerhart is a man of few words.

"That's just not my personality," Gerhart said. "I've always been shy, low key. I try to do things the right way and lead by example. I'm not a guy that's going to go out there and pump my chest and scream and jump around. I'm going to go out there and work hard, be productive and act like I've been there before."

A second-round pick in 2010, Gerhart played in 61 games with six starts for the Vikings. He had 276 carries for 1,305 yards (4.7 yards a carry) and five touchdowns. He also had 77 receptions for 600 yards and three scores.

Stepfan Taylor, the man who followed Gerhart as Stanford's top running back, is making progress in his second year with the Arizona Cardinals. Taylor ran with the first-team offense in practice Tuesday, which some analysts believe is an indication he has moved up to No. 2 on the depth chart.

Arizona's starting running back, Andre Ellington, is sidelined by a neck injury. Ellington was drafted lower than Taylor (a fifth-rounder) a year ago.

The 5-foot-9, 216-pound Taylor got just 36 handoffs as a rookie season. Even with a healthy Ellington, Taylor is expected to be used in short-yardage situations.

"I'm expecting more of a role this year," Taylor told 98.7-FM radio in Phoenix. "I always have that same mentality as preparing myself and competing as I'm a starter, so that hasn't changed a bit. But this time, I just want to eliminate more mistakes. I always prided myself on being a consistent player, so I've got to consistently do the right things."

Another Cardinal alum who might be earning more opportunities is 49ers rookie linebacker Shayne Skov. The Sacramento Bee reports Skov replaced Nick Moody on the second-team defense at Thursday's practice.

Mark Appel, the former Stanford ace who has struggled since being the No. 1 overall draft pick last year by the Houston Astros, threw five scoreless innings in his first start for Corpus Christi after being promoted to Double-A.

"You always hear the biggest jump sometimes is between High-A and Double-A," Appel told MLB.com. "It's no secret that I didn't have outstanding success in High-A, but I feel like I'm in a place where I'm doing the things that I need to do to be successful going forward.

"Whatever happened in the past, it's in the past, so I'm excited to move forward."

Julian Edelman (Woodside) was the star of Thursday's practice for the New England Patriots, wowing onlookers with one impressive catch after another. His best was a sensational one-handed diving grab in the end zone with a defender on him. Edelman, a former Kent State quarterback who made a career-best 105 catches a year ago (fourth-best in the league), caught the ball between his elbow and body.

He recently told reporters about how important it is to excel in practice.

"Confidence is built through execution, and in practice when you do it consistently," the 5-foot-10 Edelman said. "When you're out there, and you're consistently doing the right assignment, making a play, doing what you have to do at a high rate, that's when you go out and you play your fastest and you play your most confident."

One of his big plays came against Darrelle Revis, one of the best cornerbacks in the game.

Davante Adams (Palo Alto High) is off to an impressive start in his first training camp with the Green Bay Packers, who drafted him in the second round out of Fresno State. The ABC-TV affiliate in Green Bay reports Adams is poised and polished beyond his years.

Adams has shown an ability to reel in balls at the sidelines while keeping his feet in bounds. He made a spectacular one-handed grab in practice Wednesday. You can see video of the catch on the Packers' Facebook page.

AmericanSoccer.com's breakdown of players likely to make the U.S. women's World Cup team include goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart, defender Kelly O'Hara and forward Christen Press. All three are Stanford grads currently playing in the National Women's Soccer League.